Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between South Yarra and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,525 in South Yarra, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in South Yarra
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South Yarra Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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South Yarra

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,525

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in South Yarra and in Phuket

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in South Yarra and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,525 in South Yarra versus $1,294 in Phuket.

South Yarra $2,525
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,604 in South Yarra versus $2,204 in Phuket.

South Yarra $3,604
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,684 in South Yarra versus $3,115 in Phuket.

South Yarra $4,684
Phuket $3,115

Living in South Yarra is roughly 95% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: South Yarra is 87% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.46 A$24.89

$4.39 ฿148

297.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.4 A$122

$32.31 ฿1,086

164.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.44 A$12.04

$8.70 ฿293

-2.99%

Cappuccino

$3.48 A$4.97

$2.72 ฿91.6

27.94%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 A$2.91

$0.93 ฿31.28

119.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 A$2.45

$0.50 ฿16.79

244.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.74 A$13.88

$2.53 ฿85.1

284.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.50 A$12.11

$3.63 ฿122

134.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 A$2.23

$1.74 ฿58.5

-9.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.86 A$4.08

$1.45 ฿48.77

97.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 A$1.96

$1.50 ฿50.5

-8.00%

Eggs

$4.11 A$5.86

$2.17 ฿73.0

89.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.80 A$13.96

$19.09 ฿642

-48.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.04 A$10.03

$3.40 ฿114

107.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 A$21.91

$10.90 ฿366

41.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.79 A$3.97

$2.94 ฿98.9

-5.10%

Banana (1kg)

$2.06 A$2.93

$1.69 ฿56.9

21.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 A$2.01

$2.19 ฿73.8

-35.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.73 A$3.89

$2.12 ฿71.4

28.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.37 A$1.96

$1.46 ฿49.03

-6.16%

Onion (1kg)

$2.11 A$3.01

$1.37 ฿45.99

54.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.38 A$3.39

$1.08 ฿36.17

120.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 A$2.00

$0.55 ฿18.34

154.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$31.97 A$45.58

$4.43 ฿149

621.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.82 A$18.27

$18.25 ฿614

-29.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.59 A$7.97

$1.77 ฿59.6

215.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.60

$2.88 ฿96.8

85.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.76 A$3.94

$1.45 ฿48.66

90.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$88.0 A$125

$54.9 ฿1,845

60.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 A$5.43

$1.51 ฿50.9

152.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 A$2.05

$0.78 ฿26.08

84.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.73 A$42.38

$3.84 ฿129

674.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 A$1.84

$1.49 ฿50.0

-13.42%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$29.7K A$42.3K

$26.9K ฿903.7K

10.32%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$25.8K A$36.8K

$26.3K ฿885.7K

-2.03%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$237 A$338

$97.8 ฿3,288

142.21%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$26.63 A$37.97

$11.29 ฿380

135.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.26 A$58.8

$17.19 ฿578

140.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.2 A$82.9

$68.3 ฿2,297

-14.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.45 A$22.02

$10.92 ฿367

41.48%

Cinema Ticket

$16.75 A$23.87

$7.43 ฿250

125.44%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,471 A$3,523

$530 ฿17.8K

365.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.9K A$48.3K

$18.8K ฿631.4K

80.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.7 A$114

$61.7 ฿2,073

29.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.3 A$71.8

$28.25 ฿950

78.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 A$174

$96.0 ฿3,228

27.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$190

$86.8 ฿2,919

53.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 A$2,002

$721 ฿24.2K

94.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,236 A$1,762

$509 ฿17.1K

142.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,308 A$3,290

$1,950 ฿65.6K

18.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,823 A$2,599

$1,397 ฿47.0K

30.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,976 A$7,093

$4,192 ฿140.9K

18.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,912 A$7,003

$3,298 ฿110.9K

48.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.94

5.57

6.64%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for South Yarra: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

South Yarra

$1.2K 49%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 58.8% $727

Groceries & Markets

South Yarra

$321 12.7%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 17% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

South Yarra

$305 12.1%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 58.6% $179

Eating Out

South Yarra

$288 11.4%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 58.4% $168

Clothing & Footwear

South Yarra

$173 6.9%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 29.2% $51

Getting Around

South Yarra

$110 4.4%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 39.9% $44

Sport & Entertainment

South Yarra

$92 3.6%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 9.2% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,404 in South Yarra and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85 in South Yarra vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $321 vs $267 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 South Yarra

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:55 12:55 AM

20:55 8:55 PM

4 h behind South Yarra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,147

79,308

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.701 USD

1 AUD = 0.626 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.626 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.69 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

South Yarra Phuket 7,010 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

South Yarra
Phuket

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

South Yarra vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 49% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $3,787 in South Yarra and $1,940 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,404 in South Yarra versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,471 in South Yarra versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in South Yarra. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,525 in South Yarra, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in South Yarra. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, South Yarra and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in South Yarra. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.